hpr-knowledge-base/hpr_transcripts/hpr1011.txt

Episode: 1011
Title: HPR1011: NELF interview with Robert_Schweikert of Open Suse
Source: https://hub.hackerpublicradio.org/ccdn.php?filename=/eps/hpr1011/hpr1011.mp3
Transcribed: 2025-10-17 17:21:52

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The following interview was recorded at the 2012 Northeast Gnu Linux Fest.
I want to apologize to my guest and to the listeners for the sound quality in this recording.
My recording device decided to flake out on me that day and I was unaware of it until after I got all the recordings done.
So I've done as much as I can with the recording here and with the rest of my recordings from the day to make them listenable.
But they're not that great. I'd appreciate it if you would at least please try to give them a listen for the sake of the folks that I've interviewed.
Thank you and have a great day.
Your name? Robert Schweikert. How are you doing Robert?
I'm Pokey from Patrick Public Radio and you're here today representing OpenSews.
So what do you do for the project?
I maintain some packages and help out with helping right now.
Driving the User Merch project that is somewhat controversial in the Linux community but I'm helping to move packages to put their wineries in the user tree and eventually get rid of them and live and all those things in the open room.
Okay, so you're putting commercials to your packaging commercial software? Is that what you mean?
No, just the packages for the project.
Okay, I'm working on packages and other maintenance that needs to be done.
Any packages that people would recognize or libraries and stuff on the lower levels that just come?
You know, some pearl things like pearl credit.
Okay, things like that. Cool. How long have you been packaging?
Quite a while. I don't know if I've been involved with Linux for over 10 years.
Nice, nice. Okay, you said you were involved in packaging and what was the other thing he said? I'm sorry.
The Wikipedia stuff, software development, I contribute to Kiwi, which is an image builder solution.
Okay, and I'm also contributing to the LSB effort, which is part of the Linux foundation.
LSB?
Linux database.
Oh, LSB. Okay, okay. Linux and R.A. Cool.
And what was, you said there was something that was controversial about?
Well, the move of binaries from the root level to the user trip.
Okay, no.
So that changes the way the processes just laid out on Linux systems.
So the controversy is just because nobody wants to change it?
Not everybody's convinced that that's a good idea.
So there's been a lot of discussion in the Linux community.
Okay.
You know, it was started by Leonard Hoddering, who started the effort.
And Fedora is doing it.
And open source, some other distributions are looking at moving.
So, you know, slowly, but surely, Linux is moving.
We're all moving in the same direction.
Yeah, yeah, it happens.
And now, what are the pros and cons of moving that out of kernel space?
Well, I want to have the big cons that was, you know, mentioned over and over with that.
The user and file system could be on a different file system than the root level.
Okay.
And so you have to overcome mounting that file system, basically, early on when the kernel gets loaded.
Okay.
So that all the programs that we need to start up a system are available.
Got it.
And that has been overcome that issue.
And so there's not really any reasons to have the separation between the root tree and the user trip.
Okay.
And what's the big advantage to moving it out of them?
In one place, rather than having things in slash bin, then some things in slash user bin that really makes little sense.
Okay.
So where does it go specifically instead of being an user bin and user slash bin?
Well, being a user in slash user slash bin, slash user slash esp.
Okay.
And the directories at the top level slash bin, the slash esp bin will eventually just be a soft place to user bin and user esp.
Okay.
So it sounds like eventually they could even be phased out.
Yeah.
Probably not because the locations of slash bin something are hard coded in many schools.
Okay.
So having to go and fix all that is probably not realistic.
Okay.
But if you just softly use them, things are really just in one location.
Okay.
Yeah.
I guess that makes sense.
So you keep the legacy support and you move things forward to be advantageous to get the advantage of them.
That's not a bad idea.
Cool.
So to somebody new to Linux, we've got pretty technical already.
We'll go back to the beginners stuff.
So for someone new to Linux, what are the advantages of open soos?
I say it's compared to like a Windows or a Mac system or something proprietary.
Somebody just coming in.
Yes.
So somebody coming in, I think they'll notice installer, which is pretty slick.
Actually, I had one high school student here earlier that started installation on one of the test machines that I've set up here.
Cool.
And he went through it in like five minutes and now it's just installing.
And when it's done, he'll come back for the second, you know, to finish it up.
That's very good feedback, too.
It's pretty easy.
And also our system management compared to other Linux distributions, which is YOS, yet another setup tool.
Yes.
Combines all the various tasks that you have to do to that administrative system into one interface.
Yes.
And that's really great for, you know, especially for beginners.
Now that guy, I heard in the distant past, that was kind of a big slow application, but that was improved recently, wasn't it?
Yeah.
I mean, YOS initially was proprietary way back when, and it's been, you know, open source by Susan, which is now, you know, many years open source.
And, you know, it's nice.
It's a really nice interface that runs fast and you can really control pretty much the whole system.
Everything that needs to be configured can be done from that one interface.
Okay.
Very cool.
And you said open Susan.
That's the official pronunciation.
Once and for all.
Once and for all.
You heard it here, folks.
Open Susan.
So, what should I be asking right now?
Well, I don't know.
You can ask about, you know, about anything.
I can talk about Kiwi.
Okay.
Please.
I'm a contributor to Kiwi.
Kiwi is an open source project that's supported by Susan, which also supports open Susan.
Yes, sir.
And with Kiwi, we can build images.
Okay, so an image would be like the ISO image that you find on the DVD that lets you install open Susan on a machine.
Yes.
Let's build with Kiwi.
Is this similar to the online service, the online build system that Kiwi used to back into Susan Studio.
Okay, and Susan Studio is a web application that you can go to at www.susanstudio.com.
And you can point and correct your way to a customized Linux image.
Okay.
So, you can once you're an open Susan, you can choose open Susan or Susan Linux Enterprise as your base distribution.
And then you can customize it and install your own software or install packages from various repositories.
And you can basically create your own distribution based on Susan.
That just targets what you're interested in.
Okay, so similar to what other distributions call a respin.
Yes.
But, yeah, specific to you.
Right, okay.
And with the, like Susan Studio, you can get basically an image in like 10 minutes.
Okay, so what you click, it's very easy to see.
So what you're basically doing is spinning up an open Susan with the packages that you want.
And with what you would have to take out if you didn't want.
Right.
And so it's really pre-configured.
And you can perhaps use this as a tool to use one image to do a whole network of computers or a whole buildings worth of computers.
Yeah.
So, for example, what I'm doing here, sitting around waiting for people to walk by.
I'm working on building a cloud image with open regular.
Okay.
And I have a couple of machines sitting over here.
Okay.
And then sit up, just boot from that image and then it's self-installs.
And then you can have a cloud up and running in, you know, 10 minutes or something.
Once the image is built.
Well, now what kind of cloud services is that giving you?
So that would be an open, an open-up cloud?
Okay.
So, at least on the open-up you have a project.
We're talking about backups and file sharing.
Oh, no, that would be a cloud.
So when you can then run virtual machines and hop it back.
And then each virtual machine that you can put in the cloud could be a web server or a database server or whatever.
Okay.
Okay.
And they said you have a couple of machines.
Is this the type of robust system where you could yank the power cord on one and the cloud stays up because your other machine can handle it?
No.
This is up.
This is just a basic demo setup.
Okay.
But you know, depending on how much effort you want to put in, you know.
You can make it that scalable.
Okay.
Okay.
Very cool.
Have you ever been involved with putting open-susages in schools?
Yeah.
It's my laptop.
Yeah.
No, I have not.
Okay.
I was just wondering because I saw it in my kids' schools before.
Well, that would be interesting.
Actually, in the town I live in where there's a project going on that with the incoming high schoolers.
Yeah.
The one-on-one laptop program.
Cool.
And unfortunately, they're all going to Apple.
That's really bothers me.
That's what I was going to ask about because my kid's elementary school had open-susages on there.
And they switched back to Microsoft a couple of years later.
And I know they had to lay off teachers to pay for Microsoft's office and whatever windows thing went on there.
It was really heart-breaking.
I didn't know if you had any insight into any of that stuff.
Yeah.
I mean, that is one of my concerns with going to Apple, which is pretty expensive.
Yeah, no doubt.
You know, I don't see necessarily the benefit over using open-source software for that.
However, I mean, at the school, in our school district, at least, they started, you know, they're using Google Docs and things like that.
So for my kids, it's not a problem because they can bring their open-susage machines in and just, you know, work alongside those kids that have maps.
Yeah.
And it's not a problem.
So you raised your kids on Linux?
You bet.
Nice.
Here in my house runs open-source.
Nice.
Nice.
How old are your kids then?
My son.
Teenagers.
Almost 16.
And my daughter is 13.
And did they ever give you any kind of...
No, that's...
Like pushback.
Pushback.
From the very big get-go.
And that's what they've been using now.
Oh, it's very cool.
It's very cool.
I got my kids are all in Linux.
In my house.
When we go to the mother's house, they call me up with problems.
How do I fix my eye, too?
How do I fix this?
That.
It's very funny.
So how are you enjoying the Linux best so far?
It's great.
I mean, you know, we've had some people at the table.
As I said, the high school student here is doing installation.
You know, it's great.
Unfortunately, I'm alone, so I can't enjoy any of this.
Yeah, I wander too far.
You know.
Me and the table.
But it's great, you know.
Yeah.
So be some good interest.
Yeah.
Fortunately, there'll be air in the talk, so we'll be able to catch them later.
Yeah.
Were you here last year at all?
No, I was not here last year.
Somebody else from the open-source project.
Okay, yeah, because there's a lot more people here and a lot more display tables here than they were last year.
It's grown big.
Yeah.
This is the second year, I think.
Yes.
It's good.
And I don't lift you far, so it's like, I should do this.
I should come here.
Well, so how long do you expect this install to be run?
There's an install running next to us here.
Yeah.
It's a pretty old machine.
But, you know, it should still be done in about 30 minutes or 45 minutes.
And is it pulling everything off the CD?
Yes.
Pulling out from the network.
The DVDs said, I'm here now.
Okay, you've got a DVD install.
Very cool.
Very cool.
What's the, is it GNOME that's going to, that these installers are a choice on the DVDs?
Oh, yeah.
So the default for open-source is TDE.
Okay.
And we also fully support GNOME.
And in 12 open-source is a 12-1, which is the current release.
It's GNOME 3.
Okay.
We also have X-Face Integrated and LXDE.
And you have a choice of a minimal X-11 installation install.
Very cool.
A lot of installation choices by open-source.
You keep me happy then.
I like X-FCE.
I'm a big fan of X-FCE when GNOME 3 comes in.
Yeah, yeah.
X-FCE is like a stable GNOME too.
It's very nice.
It's very cool.
And you guys are just giving these out, huh?
Yeah.
Well, these are like factory-pressed DVDs too.
That's excellent.
So, Sousa must be funding those.
Yeah.
Sousa supports the open-source project.
You know, we get a budget every year.
And, you know, these come out of our open-source and marketing budget.
Yep.
Excellent.
Excellent.
It's really great to see the corporate sponsorship of the open projects.
Yeah.
And then, you know, we participate in the Google Summit of Code.
Okay.
So, we get money from that as a project.
Okay.
So, that helps, you know, fund the DVDs and marketing material, flyers and so on.
Okay.
So, you know, this being at the Worcester State University, hopefully we'll get some students
that will participate in our project.
That would be our project for open-source.
It would be really great.
What software has come out of the Google Summer Code work with open-source?
Do you know if it's any specific?
No, I can't even tell you.
So, this year we have, I saw some applications for students on the mailing list just this past week.
Okay.
One is interested in changing F disk.
Okay.
To be more user-friendly and change the architecture to allow plugins.
You know, then we have, we have a lot of other projects.
We have some projects, one project that is interested in getting the student to write a
domain-line client for students to screen deal.
Okay.
We've had a couple of application applications for that on the mailing list.
And then, yeah, we have a lot of other projects that I can't remember.
Yeah, yeah.
You know, there's a lot of stuff going on.
Okay, so if people are interested in open-source, what's the website?
Where can they go?
So, we have the Wiki, which is at en.open-source.org.
Okay.
That's the Wiki.
That's probably the best starting point.
We also have a specific Google Summer Code page.
If you're interested in the Google Summer Code, it's a student.
So, I want you to go to the en.open-source.org Wiki.
You're just going through the search and looking up for GSOC.
And then the search will find the page.
Okay.
If you just want to get open-source of the download, you can go to www.open-source.org.
Click the get-it button and then just follow the instructions really easy to download.
Okay.
And to those new two open-source and free software, this is totally cost-free.
Yes.
You can download and burn and use open-source as much as you want.
Yes.
And you can share this out with your friends.
Yes, definitely.
And help people out that way.
So, sharing is appreciated.
And if you want to contribute, you know, we have mailing lists.
There's always work to be done on the Wiki to maintain articles and things like that.
So, you don't have to be a technical user to help out.
No, you don't.
We have an artwork team.
So, they do the artwork.
You know, they're stuffing the C on the DVD cover.
Yeah.
So, we have an artwork team.
So, if you're interested in doing artwork for the project, you know, welcome.
They have, they meet on IRC once a month or so and discuss some things the artwork needs to be done.
Just recently, we had a little competition.
Well, not a competition of both for the artwork that will go for open-source of 12.2.
And these guys produce some amazing artwork that I have to say.
And it's good resume, filler, too, for people who want to help us.
That's fun.
So, you don't have to be a programmer, you know, or hacker to participate in.
You know, go to get on.
Yeah.
Yeah, there's an installation running over here.
Yeah.
Is this yours?
Oh, no, no.
No, he's running an install system where people can test it out and try it out.
No.
I was just doing it.
Yeah.
So, you know, and if you're a developer and you're interested in contributing to the project, you know, there's packaging.
You can always use more packages.
Oh, yeah.
You know, packages that are there.
You know, people always welcome help.
And you know, about fixing or whatever needs to be done.
Yeah.
Cool.
Well, do you have a personal blog you want to share anything like that or any other website you'd like to know?
I mean, I blog on the...
So, yeah, there's a lizard's.
Yep.
What people want.
Okay.
You know, in the community.
There's a blog.
I blog there every now and then, but that's pretty much it.
Great.
Cool.
Well, I want to thank you for the interview.
I really appreciate it.
Good luck today.
I hope you get some, some converts over here.
Thanks.
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